Vase (one of a pair) 1720 - 1730

Curator: What a whimsical creature! These porcelain vases date back to 1720-1730 and they belong to the Baroque style. Editor: Whimsical is putting it mildly! It's like a dragon wearing a tropical parrot exploded onto a vase. I mean that in the best way, of course. The contrast of that...exuberance with the clean, almost clinical white is strangely captivating. Curator: It’s fascinating how the makers of these porcelain vases combined Eastern and Western aesthetic sensibilities, isn’t it? The dragon-like figures evoke Asian mythical creatures and the flowers call to mind Europe's gardens, pointing towards global trade and artistic fusion, a testament to cross-cultural influences shaping Baroque artistry. Editor: Absolutely. You see that same cultural mashup everywhere at this time, the urge to take everything wonderful and cram it all together. The colors and slightly frantic, crowded composition hint at something... restless? Curator: The sculptures themselves also serve as symbols of power, wisdom and good fortune across cultures, and the bright decoration of flowers likely symbolised wealth, prosperity, and renewal. When displayed, vases such as this one affirmed one's social standing. I suspect the vase owners considered these a way of warding off bad spirits or ensuring success. Editor: Definitely more than just fancy containers. These things practically shout, “Look at me! Look at all the wonderful things I possess!” The porcelain, the colors, those wonderfully odd dragon-parrot hybrids, and what do they contain or protect in that specific moment? Curator: True, a status symbol certainly, reflecting on identity construction during that time and even, on some level, anxieties over maintaining the status quo as global exchange changed social systems. The fact this object remains protected in a museum centuries later is not without symbolism, as well. Editor: In that light, I'm sort of tickled imagining a dinner party at that time. It could feel very comforting in an odd way; maybe those parrot-dragons made their owners feel safer than we might give them credit for. Thank you for unveiling how symbols from porcelain vases could tell these deeper stories of art, time and cross-cultural influence. Curator: And thank you, it makes one think about all the many dimensions embedded in an object that initially presents as merely decorative.